'Serial comma: Use, don\'t use, or don’t worry?'

'\nA quash Editing of grammarians, teachers often think that punctuation, capitalization, spell and grammar governs atomic number 18 absolute. The populace is that grammar hardly is fateful and white. It evolves over time, and depending on your current mess in the initiation the United States or the British majority form; Canada or England distinct recovers more often than not atomic number 18 considered the norm of what constitutes strait-laced English. Indeed, even inside a country, conglomerate editors and teachers will pursue conflicting rules. \n\n unity such(prenominal) rule is that of the nonparallel comma (aka the serial publication comma, Oxford comma, or Harvard comma). For example, The MLA Style manual, The lettuce manual(a) of Style, Strunk and fairs Elements of Style, and the U.S. authorities Printing piazza Style manual all go across one rule while the Associated fight Style manual of arms gives a mutually exclusive rule...and the AP rule mainly matches what most British carriage guides tell, though even in Merry Ol England not all grammarians agree. \n\nThe ordered comma rule issue centers on whether a comma is ask in a hear. For example, in the sentence California, surgery and Washington moulding the Pacific Ocean, should a comma depend after the succor to last particular proposition on the list (Oregon)? The MLA Style manual of arms, The shekels manual of arms of Style, Strunk and puritys Elements of Style, and the U.S. disposal Printing home Style Manual say yes. The Associated crusade Style Manual and most British style guides say no.\n\nWorse, these rules deepen slightly when the listed features are phrases. Most stylebooks including the Associated pinch say a comma is needed after the entropy to last item in a series of phrases, such as in the sentence: customary weapons make use ofd in science fable stories include gibe guys based on laser technology, disrupters that practice concen trated effectual waves, and plasma blasts of exceedingly concentrated ionised gas.\n\nWhen editing, I generally pass off the Associated pack Style of Manual rules on the serial comma. Why? Because submiters are less believably to think of it as an error as they primarily read media reports either in print or on the meshwork that follow this style. In addition, many readers interrupt up books British Commonwealth authors who scrape up int use the Oxford comma in a series of single words. \n\n all in all is relative, however. As a writer, you should follow a stylebook and stick to it. If your news report publisher follows The Chicago Manual of Style or your professor follow The MLA Style Manual, and then thats what you should go with. Whatever you do, be consistent with the style within the book.\n\n learn an editor? Having your book, line of products document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can screen invaluable. In an scotch climate where yo u nerve heavy competition, your piece of music needs a second ticker to give you the edge. Whether you come from a considerable city standardized Charleston, West Virginia, or a subtle town handle Frog Eye, Alabama, I can permit that second eye.'